Ecological Mechanisms and Scaling in Heterogeneous Grassland Ecosystems

异质草地生态系统的生态机制和尺度

基本信息

批准号：
9207010
负责人：
John Wiens
金额：
$ 20万
依托单位：
Colorado State University
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
Continuing Grant
财政年份：
1992
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
1992-08-01 至 1996-07-31
项目状态：
已结题

来源：
https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=9207010&HistoricalAwards=false
关键词：
Ecological Mechanisms Scaling Heterogeneous Grassland

项目摘要

The proposed research will (a) develop theory linking the responses of individuals to spatial variation in population and ecosystem dynamics; (b) test such theory by experimental field studies and simulation modeling; (c) determine how ecological features vary with spatial scale and whether "rules" can be defined for extrapolating among scales; and (d) extend this work to systems composed of tropically linked species. The field research, conducted in a semiarid grassland ecosystem, will involve experimental studies of responses of tenebrionid beetles to the spatial structure of "microlandscapes" and to variations in spatial patterns at broader scales. Individual movement patterns at fine scales will be coupled with long-distance movements to determine how individual behavior translates into population distribution. Experiments with harvester ants will be used to determine how the removal and transport of seeds are affected by the spatial structure of ecosystems. Scaling relationships among linked trophic levels will be investigated using horned lizard-ant and longspur-grasshopper systems. The research bears directly on current issues in ecological scaling and extrapolation, flows of materials across patch boundaries, empirical testing of spatial models, and the development of an experimental and theoretical approach to landscape ecology.

拟议的研究将（a）发展理论，将个人与人群和生态系统动态的空间变化联系起来；（b）通过实验现场研究和模拟建模来检验这种理论；（c）确定生态特征的变化如何随空间量表而变化，以及是否可以定义“规则”来推断量表；（d）将这项工作扩展到由热地连接的物种组成的系统。在半干旱草地生态系统中进行的现场研究将涉及对替伯里内甲虫对“微观景观”空间结构的反应的实验研究，并在更广泛的尺度下对空间模式的变化。精细尺度上的个体运动模式将与长距离运动结合在一起，以确定个体行为如何转化为人口分布。使用收割机蚂蚁的实验将用于确定种子的去除和运输如何受到生态系统的空间结构的影响。链接的营养水平之间的缩放关系将使用角蜥蜴ant和长刺激器系统进行研究。该研究直接遵循生态缩放和外推的当前问题，跨斑块边界的材料流，空间模型的经验测试以及开发景观生态学的实验和理论方法。